Tony's Past Revealed
by ChloeHollingsworth
Summary: After an uneventful week, Tony ends up in Gibbs' basement. What will be revealed about Tony's childhood?  CONTINUED!
1. Chapter 1

It had been a slow week for the major crimes response team and the mood had been rather somber. Gibbs had noticed that Tony had been quieter this week, though he decided it was probably due to the amount of paperwork they had been doing lately. Not having a case had always affected DiNozzo negatively, mostly because he had limited patience and too much energy.

It was getting late, probably around 10 or so, which is past the time most head home if there is no case. Kate and McGee were already gone, and Gibbs was planning on leaving in a half hour or so, when he saw his senior filed agent enter the bullpen. Gibbs stared at him as he sat down at his desk, seemingly preoccupied.

"DiNozzo," there was no response. "Tony. Hey, DiNozzo," by this point Gibbs was getting a little impatient. "DiNozzo!" Tony nearly jumped out of his skin at Gibbs' yell.

"Gibbs. I didn't see you there. You scared me."

"Well, I can see that, DiNozzo. Why are you still here?"

Tony paused for a moment before saying, "just finishing some paperwork."

Gibbs glared at Tony, obviously not believing him. "What's wrong, Tony?"

The use of his first name shocked Tony into silence for a few moments before he remembered there had been a question. "Nothing, boss. Everything's fine."

Gibbs smirked, "Yeah, DiNozzo? That why I had to yell your name three times before you heard me?"

"Sorry, boss. I didn't hear you I guess. Just lost in thoughts."

"Go home, DiNozzo."

Tony shut off his computer and grabbed his things. He mumbled a quick 'night boss' while heading for the elevator.

Gibbs knew something was bothering his agent, but decided it could be put off until later.

Later that night, Gibbs was working on the boat in his basement like usual, when he heard his front door open. He stared at the stairs with his gun within easy reach. He would be lying if he said he wasn't surprised when his senior field agent walked down the stairs.

Tony hadn't been down here in a while, and only came down here when something was wrong.

"Hey, boss. Couldn't sleep, figured you'd be up still."

Gibbs said nothing, but poured another glass of bourbon that he set in front of his agent.

"Thanks." They sat there in silence for a few more minutes. Gibbs cast an occasional glance toward his agent, but Tony's eyes remained fixed on his untouched glass.

"Something on your mind, DiNozzo?" Tony didn't respond for a few minutes and Gibbs doubted he actually would.

"I wanted to ask you something, actually."

After another long silence, Gibbs said harshly, "Well, am I supposed to guess what it is?"

Tony looked flustered. "Um, no. Uh, never mind. It was stupid."

Gibbs felt bad that he had cause Tony to change his mind. "Tony…"

Gibbs was cut off when Tony suddenly said, "you had a beautiful family," while staring at the single photo Gibbs had set up on his bench. Gibbs nodded and said he knows.

"Do you miss them?"

Gibbs didn't know where this line of questioning was coming from or where it was headed. "Yeah. Yeah I do."

Tony simply nodded. "Did you….did you ever hit her? Kelly, I mean?"

Gibbs automatically knew this had something to do with Tony's father. He didn't have the details, but knew that the relationship Tony and his father had was strained to say the least and he definitely had his suspicions about his agent's past. "No. No, I never did."

"I didn't think so. You're a good father, you wouldn't do that to your child."

"Is this why you haven't been sleeping?"

Tony half chuckled which sounded wrong even to his own ears. "Yeah. It's stupid, I know, but I've just been thinking lately…" Tony's voice trailed off.

"About what?"

"My father. He called a few days ago."

Gibbs was surprised at that. As far as he knew, Tony and his father hadn't had contact since Tony decided to become a phys ed. major.

"What'd he want?"

"He left a message. I didn't answer. He said something about meeting up for lunch or something."

"Are you going to?"

"I don't know. I never called him back. I think that's why I'm here actually. I wanted your advice. I don't think I want to see him. I don't think I can forgive after…."

"After what, Tony?"

"Nothing. Just…you know my childhood was a little less than perfect."

Gibbs could tell Tony was hiding something. Something bad. He didn't want to push Tony, but he wanted to help. "What did he do to you, Tony?"

Will continue if anyone is interested. Just let me know


	2. Chapter 2

Tony was silent for a while before finally answering with, "he just, you know…was a fan of corporal punishment."

"Yeah? That all he was a 'fan' of?"

Tony was a little startled by the unanticipated question and he was less than eager to answer it, so he simply decided not to.

"Tony…Tony!…DiNozzo!…Anthony!" It was uncommon for Gibbs to use Tony's first name, but it was downright bizarre for him to say Anthony. The command sent Tony spiraling into a horrible memory.

_"ANTHONY!" The booming voice came from his father. 15 year old Tony was unsure of what he had done to bring on his father's wrath, but had little time to contemplate it when strong hands roughly grabbed his arms. He was forcefully dragged from the kitchen to his father's study. His heart was pounding wildly against his chest when he saw his father lock the door. He wasn't sure what to expect, but years of dealing with his father's temper had taught him it would be bad. He was standing in front of his father's desk, trying not to show his fear as his father glared at him from in front of the door. Tony's flight instinct had kicked in, but there was simply no where to go. Tony's father took a menacing step closer to him and another, and another, until he was standing but a few inches away from his son. Tony had instinctively backed away as his father got closer, but had to stop when his legs hit the desk. The older DiNozzo slowly began undoing his belt and Tony knew what was coming._

The flashback turned into random snippets of memory, all terrifying.

_No!_

_Stop!_

_Please don't!_

_Don't do this!_

Gibbs watched as Tony seemed to zone out. He had gotten off the stool and gone to the stairs. There he sat with his knees to his chest and his head down. He was shaking hard and Gibbs was at a loss for what to do. Tony wouldn't respond to his name, but when he started screaming, Gibbs knew it was time to take action. He moved quickly to the stair and crouched down so he was at eye level with Tony, though Tony wasn't looking. He put his hand on Tony's shoulder which he regretted when Tony violently flinched and looked up, his eyes full of fear. Gibbs' heart broke a little when he noticed the fear was directed at him.

"Tony, it's okay, it's me. You're safe."

Tony noticeably calmed down as Gibbs' voice pulled him back to the present. Gibbs once again grabbed Tony by the shoulders. This time Tony relaxed into his touch. "Sorry, boss."

"No reason to be sorry. What just happened?"

Tony paused momentarily. "I - I'm not sure. Bad memory, I guess."

"What were you remembering?"

"Um, this one time my father got pretty pissed at me. It didn't really end well for me, as I'm sure you could imagine."

"I bet. What did he do to you?"

"You know I kept telling him to stop. He didn't listen. I was telling him to stop!"

By this time Tony was getting pretty worked up and Gibbs noticed his breathing was beginning to hitch.

"Hey, Tony, calm down. It's okay."

"It's not okay! It will never be okay! I didn't want him to do it! I told him I didn't!"

"What didn't you want him to do? Hey, look at me. What didn't you want him to do?"

"I told him not to…"

Tony began crying and tried to curl into himself. Gibbs moved to sit next to the man he'd come to think of as his son and held him tightly. Tony had a death grip on a fistful of Gibbs' old NIS sweater and his head rested against Gibbs' strong chest as he sobbed. Gibbs wasn't the touchy feely type, nor was Tony, but this was what he needed at the moment and Gibbs would damn well give it to him. He whispered comforting words to Tony as he held him close. After a few minutes, Tony's breaths evened out and Gibbs stopped holding him so tight, but didn't let go. He realized Tony had fallen asleep and wasn't looking forward to trying to move him. He briefly considered staying there, but decided against it. He gently shook Tony, hoping to rouse him from his slumber.

"Tony. Come on, let's go upstairs."

Tony moved a little and grunted. When Gibbs stood up, he slumped back against the wall, not wanting to move. He was adamant on staying exactly where he was when strong arms began to haul him to his feet. He stood up, barely balanced, and leaned heavily on the ex marine as he was led up the stairs. Tony was out cold the instant he reached the couch. Gibbs knew he mustn't have been sleeping for a lot longer than he had let on to be that tired. Gibbs went to his linen closet and pulled out a blanket. He unfolded it and carefully draped it over his agent. He ruffled Tony's hair before heading upstairs. He showered quickly and was about to lay down when he heard a whimper coming from his living room. He was at Tony's side in a matter of seconds.

"NO!" Tony was thrashing around on the couch and Gibbs grabbed onto him before he threw himself onto the floor. Tony shot up and was looking around wildly.

"Tony, are you okay?"

Tony shook his head frantically. "No, no, no, no. Boss, I can't - I can't do this. It's too much. It's just too much."

"What's too much, Tony? What can't you do?"

"I can't. They won't stop. They just won't stop. I just want them to stop! Make them stop, Gibbs, please make them stop!"

"What won't stop? Tony you have to tell me what you're talking about. I can't help you if I don't know what you're talking about. What won't stop?"

"The nightmares! They won't go away! I can't get them to go away!"

"Okay. Breathe. Calm down." Gibbs waited for Tony to slow his erratic breathing. When Tony seemed somewhat in control of his emotions, he continued, "What's happening in the nightmares?"

"He's…every time I close my eyes, he's there. No matter what. He's always there."

"Your father?" it was more of a statement then a question. Tony nodded.

"Okay. What is he doing?"

Tony's breathing became more shallow and Gibbs knew he needed to calm him back down, but he wanted - no needed - some answers.

"He used to hit you a lot?"

Tony nodded slightly.

"Is that all he did, Tony?"

Tony remained silent and had his eyes cast downward.

"Tony, did your father touch you?"

At the question Tony looked up at Gibbs before quickly looking back down at the floor.

He nodded. A movement so small, it would have gone undetected by anyone other than Gibbs.

And just like that both their worlds came crashing down.

**Let me know if you're still interested in this. Will continue, if it's wanted.**

**Tell me if this is to unrealistic.**


	3. Chapter 3

Gibbs' jaw clenched and his hands squeezed into fists. He had somewhat anticipated the answer and yet it had shocked him completely when Tony nodded. He wanted to track down Tony's bastard of a father and kill him. Simple as that, he wanted him dead. Gibbs saw Tony was starting at him, waiting for his reaction. Gibbs realized Tony had picked up on his anger and must have thought it was directed at himself.

"Tony, I'm not mad at you."

Tony sighed, relieved, and cast his eyes back to the floor.

"Tony, you didn't do anything wrong. Hey, look at me." Gibbs lifted Tony's chin, so they were making eye contact. "He didn't have the right to do that to you, Tony. He doesn't deserve to call himself a father. You aren't to blame, okay?"

Tony nodded hesitantly, as if he only half way believed it. "I - I know."

Gibbs knew he'd have to reinforce what he had told his agent, but decided to drop it for now. "Good. Try and get some sleep."

Tony didn't seem like he was going to move any time soon. Gibbs watched him closely, not sure if he should say anything or not.

"C - could…could you stay out here for a while?" Gibbs was shocked at how childish Tony sounded. He saw the pleading in his agent's eyes and knew that Tony was afraid the nightmares would come back. Slowly, Gibbs nodded his head. He knew he needed his sleep, he did have to go to work tomorrow, but could not bring himself to leave Tony's side. Gibbs realized he had been staring at his agent and judging by Tony's obvious discomfort, for a little too long. "You want to watch a movie, or something?"

Gibbs knew he had said the right thing when Tony's eyes automatically lit up at the suggestion. "I think you left a movie in the DVD player last time you were here." Tony was not entirely surprised that Gibbs hadn't used his DVD player since he had last been here, even though it was at least 5 months ago. In all honesty, Gibbs had only bought the damn thing because DiNozzo was so fond of watching movies and for a while Tony coming over was quite a common occurrence. Though he had stopped coming over as often, he called with some amount of regularity. Gibbs did not enjoy talking on the phone, but he always would with Tony. Tony never said much on the phone, but the silence on the ends told a lot. It wasn't an awkward silence, it was comfortable. The things Tony didn't say were clearly audible in the pauses in conversation. Gibbs could always tell what was wrong with his agent by those phone calls. If Tony said nothing at all, it was related to the case. If Tony rambled on and on about pointless topics, it was his personal life, usually concerning a female. But on those rare occasions when Tony didn't call and showed up in Gibbs' basement, it was something serious. Something Tony felt he could not handle on his own. That was pretty much only when a case brought up painful memories from Tony's past. Gibbs snapped back to reality when he heard a movie start playing. Tony made his way back to the couch and sat down next to Gibbs. When he had first started working for Gibbs, it had taken him a long time to become comfortable enough to sit on the same couch as the other man. Gibbs was glad that his agent seemed at ease when at his home.

"I'm sorry."

Tony's words broke through Gibbs' thoughts. "What are you talking about, DiNozzo?" Tony looked up at the use of his last name, but did not maintain eye contact long.

"Keeping you up. You - you should go to sleep. You have work in the morning."

"Yeah? You do too, DiNozzo."

Tony began fidgeting with his shirt. It was one of his nervous habits that Gibbs had become accustomed to over the years. "What's on your mind, Tony?"

"It's just…I was thinking about not going."

"If you need a few personal days that's fine."

"No. I don't know. I was-"

Gibbs knew where this was headed and he didn't like it, not one bit. "About handing in your resignation? Because you better have a damn good reason other than your dad calling!" Gibbs knew his words were harsh, but he also knew that sometimes being tough was the only thing Tony responded to. Tony didn't respond. There was nothing to say, honestly. So, he just sat here staring down at his shoes. Though, Gibbs felt bad for upsetting Tony, he couldn't bring himself to apologize because he was furious. "Why the hell do you have to be so damn self destructive, DiNozzo!" It wasn't really a question, so Tony made no move to respond, though he did flinch at his boss' booming voice. He hated when Gibbs raised his voice at him. It reminded him of his not so pleasant childhood with his raging father.

"I'm sorry." That was the only response Tony could think of.

"Quit apologizing. It's-"

"A sign of weakness. Yeah, I know."

"What's going on, Tony?"

"What do you mean?"

"I mean, what has you so upset? Your father called? I get that that struck a nerve, but I'm not buying it."

"Buying what? That my father called?"

"No. I don't doubt he called. I doubt that's the only thing that has you so upset, though."

"Oh."

"Am I right?"

Tony laughed. "Are you ever wrong?" Gibbs stayed silent. "I didn't think so."

"So what is it?"

Tony stood and began to pace back and forth. "You know it doesn't make any since! I haven't talked to my father in over ten years! Then suddenly he's back! No warning or anything, he just shows up! And I can't handle this. I can't deal with this again. It's too much. Everything, it's just-"

Tony stopped pacing and cut his sentence short. He looked at Gibbs for a brief second before collapsing on the ground.

**Sorry it's so short. A bit of a writer's block lately, feeling unmotivated with this story. Hope it isn't **_**too**_** terrible. Let me know your thoughts.**


	4. Chapter 4

**First I just want to say this: the characters in this story are OOC. If this irritates you, do not read. Simple as that. I agree Tony is extremely out of character, with his emotions all crazy and everything - **_**but**_** there is a purpose for this. This story is far from over and Tony's behavior WILL be explained. Still, this story is a little fluffy. Don't like, don't read. Simple.**

Gibbs was pacing the Bethesda hospital waiting room. It had been an hour or so since Tony had arrived by ambulance. Ducky was sitting in the chair watching his friend pace back and forth. Ducky thought back to the phone conversation he had had with Jethro:

"_Duck." The voice on the other end was calm, like usual, but Ducky sensed the panic in it. _

"_Jethro, to what do I owe this phone call? Not a case hopefully, this early-"_

"_Tony's in the hospital." Ducky sighed heavily._

"_Oh dear. What trouble has young Anthony gotten himself into now?" When Gibbs did not reply, Ducky added, "I'll be there soon." There was another short silence, but before Gibbs could hang up Ducky asked, "Will he be okay, Jethro?"_

_Gibbs exhaled loudly. "I hope so, Duck."_

_And the call was disconnected. _

Ducky still did not know what was wrong with Tony. A doctor had yet to come and inform them of Tony's situation and Gibbs was less than forthcoming with answers. In fact, he hadn't said a word other than the curses he directed to the staff.

"Jethro, what did happen to the dear boy?"

Gibbs stopped pacing and looked at Ducky. "I don't know," he sighed.

"Oh?"

"He just collapsed."

Ducky immediately went into doctor mode. "Did he lose consciousness?"

"Well he sure as hell didn't seem to awake when he fell to my kitchen floor!" Ducky looked at his friend without commenting.

"Ducky…"

"I know, Jethro." Ducky knew Gibbs was worried and didn't mean to snap at him. Rather than press for answers, Ducky decided to let Gibbs talk when he had calmed down a little.

A half hour or so later, Gibbs quit walking the waiting room area back and forth and sat down in the chair beside Ducky. He exhaled heavily and leaned his head back to stare at the ceiling. Ducky decided this was as good a time as any to attempt to get the full story.

"Jethro, my boy, what did happen to Anthony?"

With a sigh, Gibbs replied, "He was at my house - "

Upon hearing those words, Ducky knew something was really wrong - otherwise Tony would not have been at Gibbs' house.

"- and he was getting pissed off and rambling, then he just fell."

"What caused this rather uncharacteristic event?"

Gibbs took a minute before replying, "his father."

"But I thought Anthony hadn't talked to him in years?"

"He called."

"Well, what did he say?"

"I don't know. Tony didn't say."

"Ah. But you believe this isn't true?"

"I don't doubt his father called, I just know there's more to it."

"I see. Well, I'm sure Anthony will tell you everything all in due time."

Gibbs shook his head slightly. "Let's hope your right, Duck."

_I'm sure I am, _thought Ducky.

Eventually, a doctor emerged through the large double doors and headed toward them.

"You're with DiNozzo? I'm looking for his next of kin. A … Leroy Jethro Gibbs?"

"You found him. How is he?"

"He's fine. His pulse was awfully quick, so we're monitoring his heart rate. Other than a little erratic breathing, he seems to be doing fine. He has yet to regain consciousness, but judging by the bags under his eyes that's hardly a surprise. We could not find a cause for his collapsing, but we're thinking it was probably just exhaustion mixed with anxiety. You can see him now. Room 212." With that, the doctor quickly turned on his heel and left.

"I'll call the others," Ducky stated. Gibbs gave a curt nod and headed down the hall to Tony's room.

When he enter the room, Tony had his eyes squeezed shut and was mumbling incoherent things. He was tossing and turning slightly, obviously having a nightmare.

Fifteen year old Tony had been expecting a whipping when his father had began to undo his belt, but what came next haunted Tony's dreams for years to come.

_The elder DiNozzo grabbed Tony's writ and yanked him forward before shoving him into the wall in one swift move. He pinned Tony to the wall, the back of Tony's head colliding with it painfully. He leaned forward , his breaths felt warm on Tony's ear. He whispered, "I always knew you were just like your mother. A whore." He grasped his son through his pants before Tony even had time to realize what was happening. He gasped when his father began to unbutton his pants. Tony began struggling, but his attempts were futile. His pants were dropped to his ankles. The tears began to stream down Tony's face when he felt his boxers being pulled at before joining his pants on the floor. His father grabbed him by the shoulders and threw him to the ground roughly. Tony knew what was going to happen before he felt the offending object slam inside him. _

**Sorry this isn't the best. Will continue writing this if people continue reading it even though it is terribly ooc. I find it awfully hard to write for Ducky, I don't know why. Let me know your thoughts.**


	5. Chapter 5

A/N: I have a couple of things I need to say in regards to this story. First, I am sorry for my previous author's note. I meant no offense by it, but it came out sounding rude and uncalled for. I really do appreciate all the reviews I received and I know it was just constructive criticism. Again, I'm sorry for that. Second, I have no idea where I could even go from here in this story honestly. If anyone has ideas regarding that subject please leave a review or you can email me at:

If I can't find inspiration for this, it will be discontinued. Sorry!


	6. Chapter 6

_**Okay I know I wasn't going to continue this, but I gave it one more shot, so if you guys like this, I'll take it off permanent hiatus. **_

Gibbs was a little out of his element standing near Tony's hospital bed and watching his agent toss and turn, lost in his nightmare. He was unsure of whether or not to wake him. He almost did a couple of times, but decided against it because he knew Tony needed the rest. Then again -

Gibbs didn't get to finish his thoughts as he turned his attention to Tony who's thrashing around had quickly become more violent. Gibbs took a few steps closer to the hospital bed.

"Tony. Tony, wake up."

Tony continued thrashing around, clearly still trapped in his nightmare.

"Tony." Gibbs reached a hand out and touched his senior field agent's shoulder in an attempt to awaken the younger man. Tony shot up into a sitting position, eyes wide and breathing shallowly. Gibbs noticed that Tony's eyes were searching the room frantically for some unseen threat. He put his hand on Tony's shoulder in what he hoped was a comforting way. Tony flinched and shrunk back from the touch.

Gibbs' infamous gut told him there was _definitely _something seriously wrong with his agent. And he'd be damned if he didn't find out what it was.

"Tony?"

Tony turned his head to look at his boss, his eyes focusing for the first time since he'd woke up from his nightmare. "Boss?"

NCISNCISNCIS

Gibbs had tried to get Tony to open to him, but his attempts were futile. Tony wouldn't budge. Eventually, Gibbs had had enough and he'd stormed out of the hospital. Tony had checked himself out AMA soon after that.

Ducky had called Jethro to inform him of Tony's unrecompensed dismissal from the hospital. Gibbs had been furious, but had decided to deal with his anger how he dealt with most things: by drinking bourbon alone in his basement and working on his boat. Around eleven that night, he had gotten a phone call. At first he wasn't going to answer, then thinking it could possibly be DiNozzo, he changed his mind.

"Gibbs," he answered curtly.

"Hello, this is Mary from Bethesda Memorial Hospital. I'm calling in regards to Anthony DiNozzo, you're listed as his next of kin."

Gibbs heart sunk as he realized something had happened to his senior field agent. Hell, Tony was more than that. He was _family_. He was his _son_. "What happened?"

NCISNCISNCIS

Gibbs walked into Tony's hospital room to see the younger man sitting up in his hospital bed, staring at the wall. Gibbs just looked at Tony for a minute, trying to read the younger man's face, but his face was blank. Gibbs could see a large bruise forming on Tony's cheek. Gibbs pulled an uncomfortable looking chair that was against the wall next to Tony's bed. He sat down, still staring at Tony who was doing everything in his power no to look at Gibbs.

"Tony, what's going on?"

Tony had been staring at the stitching of the blanket that was covering his legs as if it was the most interesting thing in the world, but he looked up at Gibbs now. He opened his mouth as if he was about to say something, but no words came out and he subsequently shut his mouth once again. He waited a minute, took a deep breath, and tried to say something again.

"I don't…" Tony trailed off. Gibbs waited for a minute, but his patience was wearing thin and he needed to know what the hell was going on.

"You what, DiNozzo?"

"I - I don't think I should tell you." Seeing the angry look on his boss's face, Tony quickly added, "really, it's not a big deal. Just - just it would be best if you weren't…involved."

"DiNozzo. You've got five second to tell me what the hell is going on with you." The look on Gibbs' face clearly stated 'don't test me, DiNozzo', but Tony being Tony did just that.

"I can't."

"What do you mean you _can't_?" Gibbs voice was raising by this point, his frustration clear. "Tony, I'm trying to help you. I know there is something wrong, don't bother trying to deny it." Tony looked back down at his blanket, not responding.

"What happened with your father?" Gibbs said, his voice serious.

Tony's head immediately snapped back up. "No -" Tony cut himself off from finishing tat sentence. One glance at the look on Gibbs' face and he knew better than to deny it. Clearly Gibbs had a pretty good idea of what was going on and pretending nothing was happening would only serve to piss him off. Tony sighed exasperatedly. "He came to see me. Well, actually some of his _friends_ came to see me."

"And?"

"It didn't go so well."

"Well, I could have guessed that, DiNozzo," Gibbs said, in a _duh_ sort of way.

A shadow of a smile passed over Tony's features, but as quickly as it had come, it was gone.

"What happened, Tony?"

Tony had cast his gaze downward once again and Gibbs didn't think he was going to get an answer. "They came to my apartment after work. I had ordered a pizza, so when I heard a knock at the door I didn't bother to see who it was before opening it, so that's how they got in," Tony said. "Though, if I hadn't answered it there is a fair chance they would have just broken my door down. They certainly looked capable of it," Tony added with some of his usual joking personality shining through.

"What'd they want?"

Tony laughed humorlessly. "They said my father sent them to _talk_," he spat the word out like it was poison, "with me."

"I'm guessing they weren't really there to have a conversation."

Tony laughed again. It was so unnatural even Gibbs felt a little put off by it. "Not unless you consider the obscenities they yelled at me while they repeatedly punched and kicked me until I lost consciousness a conversation."

"Why would you father send men to hurt you?"

"Well, he's never been my biggest fan," Tony replied sarcastically.

"Why wouldn't they just kill you?"

"The woman who lives across the hall heard something and called the police. I think it was a way to prove they'll make good on their threat."

Gibbs shook his head. "That won't happen, Tony."

Tony laughed at that. "It's too late."

_**This one's a little longer for you guys! **_

_**Let me know your thoughts(:**_


	7. Chapter 7

Good news! Starting December first, I will be posting a new chapter for all of my stories for the 25 days of Christmas. That's right - that's 25 new chapters. Just my way of saying thank you to all of my wonderful readers and reviewers!


	8. Chapter 8

Recap from the previous chapter:

_"Why would you father send men to hurt you?"_

_"Well, he's never been my biggest fan," Tony replied sarcastically._

_"Why wouldn't they just kill you?"_

_"The woman who lives across the hall heard something and called the police. I think it was a way to prove _

_they'll make good on their threat."_

_Gibbs shook his head. "That won't happen, Tony."_

_Tony laughed at that. "It's too late."_

"What do you mean 'it's too late,' Tony? What aren't you telling me?" Gibbs questioned rather harshly, the impatience and frustration in his voice palpable.

"Just that, Boss. They know where I live. They _already_ got to me."

"This time. Just this time. We can stop them, Tony."

Tony became obviously irritated then. "No! No, we can't! There's nothing that can be done!"

Trying to diffuse his senior agent's anger, Gibbs lowered his voice. "Tony. We can do something, okay? _I_ can do something."

"No! No one can do anything! Not even you."

"Why won't you trust me, Tony?"

"This isn't about _trusting_ you!"

"Yeah? Then what is it about? Tell me what this is all about, Tony!"

Tony didn't respond at first, only giving a slight shake of his head.

"Tony."

"I - you-" Tony paused. "You can't fix this, Gibbs. Not this time."

"I can try."

Tony shook his head again. "What's the point?"

"What's the point? You're my senior field agent, DiNozzo!" Gibbs rubbed a rough, calloused hand down his face. "I care, Tony. I care."

Tony was silent for a long while before lifting his head to make eye contact with Gibbs. "Do you?" Tony's voice was soft and small, much like that of a scared child.

Gibbs was not a man who typically took the time to reassure others of things he thought to be self-evident, but this was different. Things with Tony were _always_ different after all. "Yes. Do you think I'd be here if I didn't give a damn, DiNozzo?" The question may have sounded rough, but Gibbs knew more than anyone that sometimes you _had_ to be rough with Tony. He just responded to it - years of programming from his father, no doubt.

Despite the angry façade Tony was actively trying to maintain, he couldn't help the small chuckle that escaped his lips at Gibbs's question. "No. No, I suppose not, Boss. You aren't exactly one to waste precious time that could be spent drinking bourbon from mason jars in a dimly lit basement while working on a boat."

Gibbs took no offense to the statement, knowing Tony defaulted to wit and humor when trying to handle a particularly difficult situation. "You're damn straight, DiNozzo."

"I'm sorry, Boss."

"Why?"

Tony was surprised at Gibbs's question. When Tony apologized to Gibbs it was always followed by a "never say you're sorry, DiNozzo" or a "don't you ever do that again" or very rarely a "it's okay, Tony" - but never a why. Gibbs had never cared why, why would he care now? Or perhaps it's not that he hadn't cared before, just that he had always known the reason for Tony's apologies.

"I - I just shouldn't have dragged you into this. It's not your problem. I didn't mean to. I'm sorry."

"Dragged me into what exactly?"

Tony looked down at his blanket and began to fidget with its edge. "I don't know. This. All of this. You shouldn't even be here."

"Neither should you, Tony."

"It's - it's my fault, though."

"What exactly is your fault, Tony? That your father's a bastard? That he sent a couple of his goons out to harm his own son? That they hurt and scared you so badly that you wont let anyone help you? Which part of that is your fault, Tony?" By the end of his tirade, Gibbs's voice had raised significantly, causing Tony to flinch at the harshness of it.

" You're mad at me."

"I'm frustrated." Gibbs noticed Tony's frown deepen and his eyes screw tight for a few moments. "I'm not frustrated with you, Tony. I'm just concerned. Let me help you."

"I can't."

"Why not? And you better give me a damn good reason this time."

"You wouldn't understand."

"Try me, DiNozzo."

"They said they'd kill me."

"I can stop that from happening, Tony. I can protect you. But this is only going to work if you tell me what I need to know."

"I just - I can't, Gibbs. I _can't_."

"Yes, yes, you can. Tony, you've gotta trust me. Let me help you. _Please." _

_Gibbs never said please. It wasn't a rule of his, no, but it was a sort of unsaid guideline that he never drifted from. So when Gibbs said please, you did what he asked. _

"_What do you need to know?"_

"_Who were they?"_

"_I don't know."_

"_Tony."_

"_I swear, Gibbs. I didn't know those guys."_

"_How do you know you're father sent them?"_

"_They told me. They knew my name and everything. Told me my father sent them to 'chat.'" _

"_Walk me through what happened, Tony."_

_Tony exhaled heavily. I was sitting on my couch watching a rerun of Happy Days. Not my taste, but it's a Wednesday night, nothing's on. I was waiting for the pizza I delivered. There was a knock at my door and expecting the pizza guy, I thought nothing of it. I opened the door and one of the guys punched me in the face. I fell backwards. Not that it was that hard of a hit, but I was expecting a pizza, not a right hook. Before I could get up one of the other guys put a gun to my forehead, so I just stayed there, laying on my floor. At first they were just saying stuff."_

"_Saying what?"_

"_Um, just how my father sent them and how they were going to 'teach me a lesson' for being such a crappy son." _

"_Teach you a lesson by beating the crap out of you?"_

"_My father's always been quite inventive with his punishments. He certainly didn't lack creativity."_

"_Keep going, Tony."_

"_Right. So they were saying some stuff and then, I don't know. They just started kicking me and hitting me. I couldn't get up, not with the gun and there were too many hands." _

"_How many men were there?"_

"_Four at first. I heard a fifth one come in, I'm sure of it. Didn't see him, though. I had my eyes arms over my face."_

"_So after they beat you, what happened? They left?"_

"_No, one of them heard my neighbor calling the police. They knew they were running out of time, so they -" Tony broke off abruptly. "Yeah, they just left."_

"_You sure they 'just left,' Tony?"_

_Tony knew outright lying to Gibbs would not work in this situation, so he tried for a variant of the truth. "Well, there were some more punches thrown."_

_Gibbs didn't believe Tony - not at all - but he decided not to push him. Tony would come around in time. Gibbs just hoped it was before Tony fell apart._


End file.
